Halyard Capital Invests in StratEx

NEW YORK, Dec. 21, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Halyard Capital, a New York-based private equity fund, today announced the acquisition of an ownership interest in Strategy Execution Partners, LLC and OAE Software, LLC (d/b/a StratEx) from its founders, who will retain significant equity ownership in the business and continue in their senior leadership roles.  As part of the transaction, Halyard is also providing expansion capital to the business to accelerate a number of StratEx's growth initiatives.  Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.  

Based in Chicago, StratEx delivers a robust, Human Capital Management ("HCM") SaaS platform that addresses all aspects of the employee lifecycle, from applicant tracking and time and attendance to payroll, benefits and performance management.  StratEx allows its customers to "Automate, Mitigate, and Manage" their Human Resources ("HR") needs with its intuitive, paperless solution, eStratEx, and through the support of the company's HR compliance experts.  The company has become a trusted partner to hundreds of satisfied customers, including many in the restaurant, hospitality and retail industries.        

"I am thrilled to be teaming up with Halyard Capital to build upon the strong foundation we have put in place at StratEx," said the company's CEO and co-founder, Adam Ochstein.  "We have built a superior HR software platform for businesses with multiple locations, lean resources and complex scheduling needs.  These types of companies are desperate for an intuitive, comprehensive solution and they are responding strongly to both our differentiated functionality and our team's expertise.  Now is the time to take our growth to the next level and we have found a perfect partner to help us do that." 

Jonathan Barnes, Partner of Halyard Capital, commented, "This investment is reflective of Halyard's continued focus on opportunities in the HCM space.  In StratEx, we found a business with a proprietary platform that provides a broad suite of SaaS-based applications that help automate and streamline the HCM workflow in a regulatory-compliant fashion.  The Company is quickly gaining market share and we hope to accelerate its growth with additional investment in products, capabilities and people."

StratEx was advised in the transaction by Harbor View Advisors and Weiss Brown.  Halyard was represented by Akin Gump.   

About Halyard Capital
Halyard is a lower-middle market private equity firm focused on creating value within companies in high- growth sectors.  Halyard's sectors of focus include technology-enabled Business and Information Services, Digital Marketing and Data Analytics, IT Security and IT Infrastructure and Communications.  Halyard specializes in leveraged buyouts and growth equity investments, driven by its deep understanding of its targeted industries, its proactive development of investment theses, and its network of executive relationships.

About StratEx
StratEx, based in Chicago, is a provider of HR software and services.  StratEx designed its SaaS-delivered platform, eStratEx, to serve the streamlined needs of small and mid-sized companies.  StratEx provides an entire suite of HR solutions through a single database, eliminating problematic integrations with complex interfaces and the need for multiple points of data entry.  StratEx's account management teams are also available to manage and mitigate HR risk throughout the employee lifecycle by providing on-demand support, including communication training and compliance guidance. 

SOURCE Halyard Capital